I chose a recipe from Jill Norman's The Cook's Book: Step-by-step techniques & recipes for success every time from the world's top chefs, a book I gave to K. as a Christmas present last year after reading Sam's enthusiastic praises to Jill Norman's hefty tome. The book is divided into sections, each full of great instructions and recipes by the masters of their field - Dan Lepard (Breads & Batters), Ferran Adria (Foams), Marcus Wareing (Meat), Ken Hom (Chinese Cooking), David Thompson (Thai Cooking), Pierre Herme (Pastry & Sweet Doughs; Desserts), to name just a few. I've tried quite a few recipes from the book (Pierre Herme's recipe for pâte brisée with a twist is a particular favourite of mine; K. has been taken by Madame Guérard's method for deep-frying eggs), and due to the accumulation of our newest kitchen gadget have been reading up on Adria's chapter recently :)

The recipe is from Peter Gordon's chapter on Flavourings, and has been very slightly adapted. I reduced the recipe to feed the two of us; only used whole spices, as that's what we keep in the house; used fresh garlic, as I've never understood the appeal of dried garlic powder. I also cooked my salmon fillets for a wee bit longer than prescribed by Peter Gordon, yet still leaving salmon tantalisingly opaque-pink inside. Note that although it is usually recommended to dry-roast your whole spices first, it's not necessary here, as the spices will be coming into direct contact with the heat anyway.

And yes, of course it's a keeper. I wouldn't be sharing the recipe with you otherwise.

Crush all cumin seeds, coriander seeds and peppercorns in the pestle & mortar, add other spices and finely chopped garlic clove. Mix and rub over salmon fillets or steaks (both sides!). Cover the tray and leave to marinate at room temperature for about 30 minutes.Heat a heavy-bottomed frying pan on a moderately high heat until hot, add the oil. Place salmon fillets in the pan. Leave to cook for 2-3 minutes, without moving them (this helps to get a nice and even browning).Turn salmon fillets around, cover the pan with a lid and cook for another 2-3 minutes, depending on how cooked you like your salmon.Transfer onto warmed plates and serve with a cucumber salad and a dollop of thick yogurt/sour cream.

11 comments:

Sounds quite delicious. I've recently discovered that I quite like coriander seed, which I always thought was not one of my favorites for some reason. So now I'm on the lookout for recipes that have it and this looks like a keeper.

Those look delicious! I always mean to make blackened fish/chicken/something but never quite seem to get round to it. I have, however, taken to smearing my salmon fillets with a powdered spice mix of jalapeno, lime and coriander seeds - fantastic!

Kalyn - I only discovered coriander seeds few years ago, and have liked them from the beginning. Coriander/Cilantro, however, was totally disgusting in the beginning - and now it's one of my favourite herbs:)

Lydia - well, it's a heavy book, so I can see why it's usually at the bottom of a pile:) But yes, there are plenty of good-looking recipes to try..

Shayne - Cajun cooking is something quite unfamiliar to me, so I'm only in the learning process. But so far, so good!

Susan - thank you!

Sam - I must thank you for recommending this one - I don't think I would have otherwise bought it. Re: fish & Fred - that's a pity indeed. Maybe you can sneak fish into food, you know, like parents sneak vegetables into children's food:)

This book is really great, I like it very much. It shows all those strangely named but renowned dishes in a very simple way so even non-profs can try it at home. Very recommended as a gift for a food lover.